Selections ~ Windows with Trend Windows

On Friday of the last week of school, I headed off to Trend Windows to confirm selections for the windows and external doors. Last day of school means not getting anything done for the next 2 weeks so it had to be done!

I knew I wanted the colour to be Pearl White so that was easy, but as always there were more decisions to make.

I chose bi-fold doors at the back over stacking sliding doors as it suits the house style better and also because of the wide track we’d have at the bottom with sliders. With sliders you don’t get the full width door opening (and as well I can’t stand the noise of the kids slamming a sliding door shut!).

We have a set of 6 doors which open from the middle so we could just open up half sometimes and still have a nice big opening.

The downside to having bi-folds is if you want a flyscreen door it costs basically the same as the door itself! They look amazing though as they retract right back into the side when not in use. The screen system can be retrofitted later on but it’s harder then.

I’ve decided at this stage not to have a screen door and just deal with the flies and mozzies as they come (I used those Mortein auto spray diffusers when we were in Darwin and they worked a treat so I’ll do that).

I may live to regret it but for me I can’t imagine opening up the bi-fold doors and then pulling across a big screen…. isn’t the whole idea to have seamless indoor/outdoor living? And when we’re having a barbie with guests where people are in and out with food, drinks, plates etc, all the time, it’s just easier to leave the space open.

Not to mention the kids running in and out! OMG my kids never shut a door anyway, (or they slam it as mentioned), so it’s less stressful for me to not have one at all!

John the rep also made a good point, saying that people usually put screens now on the outside edges of a terrace/alfresco to make that outdoor room, so when you have those down it’s protecting from insects already.

We have 3 windows in that area too, so we’ll open those when we just want fresh air.

Quantum sashless windows

Talking of those 3 windows, they’d been drawn on the plans as sashless double hung windows, which was done to give a clear view of the pool. These windows are pretty cool as they slide up and down at the same time for maximum airflow, but they’re super expensive. I didn’t think we need them as they’ll probably be covered with plantation shutters anyway and are a real modern design, so I changed them to awnings (the transom will be at 1.8m high so still a clear view for me when I’m standing, and for everyone when sitting on the lounge).

Doing this then gave me some budget to spend on upgrading those awnings to the semi-commercial frames (Quantum range) to match the bi-folds frames.

I asked John to quote Quantum for the 2 large front windows as well because the Quantum awnings look so much better and they’ll stand out more visually at the front of the home with their chunky frame. They’ve got great clean lines, easy to clean sills (#winning) and a much sturdier winder.

Quantum awning windows

All the windows were awnings except for the bathroom and Bed 2 (which were sliders), so I changed them to standard awnings too for continuity.

The only exception to this was the laundry with the benchtop sliding window (as discussed in Working Drawings are Go).

Matching white winders and standard glass were confirmed and I was done.

I love Bi-fold doors and I reckon you’ve made a great choice! I’d love to have some in our house but we just have a sliding door. Maybe one day if we renovate or build a new home, we can get to choose something similar.